Exercise For Over 60-65 Year Olds (2024)

Great info! I need to pass this along to my mom 🙂

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I try to swim and ride exercise bikes in the Y a couple times per week going to get on the weights as I get back in better shape battling stenosis of my spine getting pain blocks but really want to get activity level back up to where it was when I was working

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I’m 64. I go to the gym 4-6 times a week. I’m training for The Tough Mudder X 2 and a Tough Viking next year. Did The Nut’s Challenge this year. Approximately 8 kms and 100 obstacles. Did the best time in my age class and finished under 2 hours.

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I am 65 years old and have recommenced distance exercise after a 20 yr break due to injury. In any event walking/jogging is the best I can do after 6 months and go for a distance of 10-12 kilometers over about 1-1/2 hours. Doing this has resulted in a great amount of weight loss but not a great increase in endurance……not sure why.
I lift weights 3 times a week as I have throughout my life however I find it difficult if not impossible to build muscle mass and would like to know why! As when I was young it was very easy to bulk up which was the case right up to age 60!
Any suggestions would be appreciated.
Thank you,
Spencer

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Combine walking at least 3 miles with 10 minutes of rowing. And on alternate days, add 20 minutes biking to the routine.

Warm up 10 minutes with calisthenics. Cool down 15 minutes with any dumbbell reps.

And watch yourself feeling super within 3 weeks.

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I find a the XBX system superb as it builds in (i) a warm-up, (ii) strength training and finishes with (iii) a cardio workout. It’s actually designed as an exercise system for women, but works just great for this 66-year-old man. You can do it at a light intensity to start with and build up the intensity as you perfect your form and build capacity.

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I am 60 and was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes, which got me into a regular exercise program. It has been 5 years now and I am addicted. I normally do cardio intervals for 30 minutes, 4 days per week and strength training for 25 minutes 2 days. I hope to increase that in the future, once I retire It is now a part of my life and I love it 🙂

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age 65, “retired” professional alpinist. suffered injury 8 years ago that left me with traumatic brain injury, vastly reduced strength, compromised balance and flexibility. patience is key. I was on my back for three months. it was 6 years of physical therapy before I could do an air-squat. I squat with barbell now. I can do 4 pullups, compared to the 20 I could do before the injury
strength, balance, and flexibility all decrease with age, so I focus on big compound moves that address all of those issues. Two core moves comprise the core of my workout: barbell squat, and muscleup. since the injury, I have not recovered the ability to perform a free muscleup, so I perform the move counterbalanced. these are not the only moves I use, but I consider them the most important.
cautions: start VERY slowly. flexibility and balance are at least as critical as strength. I did not attempt a barbell squat until I could comfortably perform an air-squat century. even squatting as lightly as I now do, I NEVER squat outside of a properly configured power rack.
for aerobics, although I prefer rowing, I currently focus on jumping rope to address issues with flexibility and resilience in my ankles and feet. I occasionally run trails, though I never run on paved surfaces.
-Haireball

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Age 60, I started exercising back in January of 2018. I am 6’5″, and I weighed at that time 266. I started walking everyday till I got a routine of walking for 1 hour everyday. I also started working out ( lifting weights). I have bad shoulders, so a little limited on how much I can lift. But I do the bench press, curls, work out my triceps, And work on my abs, among a couple exercises with dumbbells. I try to lift every other day with a day or two of rest in between work outs. I have lost 36 pounds to date September 2018. I am very pleased with my results.

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I am a 69 year old woman. After decades of sedentary living, I started exercising at 64 with two goals in mind: keep up with grandchildren and do outdoor volunteer projects for my state’s Dept of Fish and Wildlife. First, I began taking 20-minute walks three times a week in my neighborhood. After a month of walking, I added in a DVD of workouts designed for seniors. Pretty soon I started using a couple of online resources for home workouts, FitnessBlender and Team Body Project, doing both cardio workouts and strength training with light dumbbells. I started with 2-lb dumbbells and have worked up. Depending on the muscle group worked, I use from 5 to 12 lb dumbbells now. Each week, I do two low-impact HIIT cardio workouts (reaching a target heart rate that is 90 percent of maximum heart rate) and two or three regular cardio workouts (target heart rate that’s 70-80 percent of maximum). In the summer, I enjoy water aerobics. In all I usually tally 180 to 240 minutes of exercise for the week. I have lost 20 lbs. But best of all, I feel wonderful and fully enjoy my grandkids.

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I am 69 years old, have a tear in shoulder rotator cuff. I do most of my weight training on machines. I follow a Chest/Shoulder/Tricep and a Legs/Back/Biceps routine 2x a week with 2days of cardio and abs. The most excercises I do is 6-7 per routine with 3-4 sets and 12-15 reps. So far so good. I’am limited with the shoulder , but I try not to let it stop me.

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I am 63 & in the past 10 yrs I have had shoulder,back & knee surgery.I just recently joined a gym & I have been feeling better lately.I usually do 20 min.on the bike,15 min.on the rowing machine & about 20-30 min.on weights 3 times a week.From what I’ve read here it looks like I am on the right track if I need to do something different please let me know.Thanks

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61 yr old. I have been training for years. Weights on machines and free weights. I have been blessed having made this commitment. Only injuries are torn rotator cuffs I have rehabed via surrounding muscles and limiting motion. I vary workouts light and heavy and walk for cardio or swim. Having done this religiously since early 20s has so helped over the years, that most my age and younger cant keep up and have many health issues. Eat right, work out regularly and consistantly and stay with it. Life Longevity runs into the 90s in my family line so I kind of knew I better make myself be able to work long years. I am happy, healthy and God willing will be for years to come. Start anytime people, and stay with it, you can. Be consistent. Its the key to success

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I am 59 and average 25k steps a day. I was type II diabetic with high blood pressure, and almost 240. I had a motorcycle wreck 1 year ago beat me up pretty good. Now I am 203, have stopped taking medication. BP is 110/65. Resting pulse 55. I lift and jog 5 days a week on a split routine. I read this article and thought good god. How limiting. On Keto 5 weeks now. Able to work out just fine with almost no carbs in diet. People ask me how old I am I say guess they say 45. Push yourself but make sure you are getting top notch nutrition and REST. I did take off 2 days on the weekend, but about to head to the gym on Monday after working 8hrs.

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Female age 65. Starting in 1990, I have 3X during my life focused on severe weight lose (25-30 lbs.) and accomplished my goal. However, did not keep off the weight for more than 3-4 years each time because I fell back into old habits of not exercising and eating unhealthy foods. My husband died recently and I’ve decided that now is the time for me to get myself into the best physical shape by proper exercise and eating healthy food. I am 5’3″ and weighted 181 lbs. at the beginning of December 2019. I now eat lots of veggies, 2 servings of protein, and 2 servings of carbs daily. I walk on the treadmill at pace of 2.8 mi/hr and travel for 3 miles every day in Dec., 4 miles every day in Jan and am working my way up to 5 miles. I “exer-dance” to 3-4 fast songs every day. I don’t know actually how to dance but I try and I do a lot of butt shaking and keep my feet planted on the floor. I’m having fun and seeing results. End of Dec. I had lost 11 lbs. (170 lbs). Today 01/14/20, I have lost 2 more lbs. and will not let up on my regime until I am at 145-150 lbs. I am now looking at a bike to start riding, probably only locally but we’ll see. Proper eating, daily exercise, and determination are the keys to success when one is attempting to lose weight.

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60 yr old female. Had to do something, constant pain 24/7, looking at way too many replacement surgeries in my future. Doctors won’t give anything for pain now, so I figured I’d better do something for myself before I ended up in a wheelchair or a nursing home. I’m still in constant pain, but most of it is from lifting now. HRT in the mornings takes care of a lot of it. I do some sort of low impact cardio 5-6 times a week, usually 60 minutes (elliptical bike, elliptical, or mountain hike/walk), unless it’s a lifting day, then I do 30 on an elliptical bike to warm up. I start very slow on the bike and warm up that way, as I hate doing stretches. I do yoga 3-5 times a week in the evenings, and lift 3 days a week. I started doing neck lifting and lifts that concentrate strengthening the knees, as I’m looking at knee replacement soon if I don’t, and reconstructive surgery on my neck, which never seems to end well for anyone. I just wish that my body recovered from lifting as well as it did when I was younger. I’m going to be consistent for a minimum of 12 weeks to see what happens. If things smooth out and get better, I’ll keep up with it. If they don’t, I’m throwing in the towel on the whole shebang. I know I should be more positive, but I was already in pain 24/7, and now it’s worse from muscle/joint soreness, but I’m going to keep on anyway, and hope that things get better, but this constant pain is a real drag. But I know for a fact that just sitting on my butt and doing nothing is not going to make things any better. I started 2 weeks ago, got 10 to go to see how it all works out. I’ve also started seeing an applied kinesiologist/chiropractor, a super acupuncturist, and doing neurofeedback. Wish me well, please.

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I’m 64 and have worked out and cycled for many years. The last 8 months I have worked out from home doing Burn360, an online Power workout with weights 3 times a week, high intensity, takes about 25’ plus warm up and cooldown. The other 3 days are cardio intervals. Never had such well developed muscles and maintaining a weight I had in my early 20’s.

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I turned 61 earlier this month. I’ve been active all my life, so exercising is pretty easy for me. For the past 5 years I’ve commuted to work on my vintage 10 speed. There’s a history of heart disease and diabetes in my family, so I’m focused on staying healthy. I recently ordered a pair of Kangoo boots – due to COVID lock-downs in 2020, my 10-speeding came to a halt. I miss the cardio workout on my bike; however, I set it up as a trainer at home. I will supplement my exercise routine with Kangoo jogging at the local track. Alas, due to ongoing COVID infections “back East”, by boot order is delayed, so I’ll continue my workout indoors. The Kangoo YouTube videos really inspired me, and I’m very anxious to embrace “the great outdoors” this summer! 🙂

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I served Special Forces 8 years then Fire Dept. 22 years, fitness trainer for fire Dept 6 years, I was injured very badly, many fractures including severe brain Inj., wheelchair 6 months, walker now walk much better without any help, have always worked out resistance with much cardio have all weights I need at home plus mountain bike ride 4 miles 4 times a week

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I am 70 years old. Diagnosed with diabetes end of March. Ride stationary bike 30 minutes every day, average 16 mph at resistance 6 out of 8. Lift weights every other day. 3 sets of bench presses, dumbbell presses, dumbbell rows, dumbbell curls. Have lost 31 pounds since end of March 2021.

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I’m a 74 year (young) male. Just re-retired from physically active work and want to increase and maintain my overall health. I weigh 175 and 5-10 height. Cholesterol and blood pressure are a little above what is considered “normal”. I just started using my treadmill again and do a brisk walk for 30 minutes daily for 1 mile; starting at a slow speed, then increase that to a rapid walk and slow down again for several minutes before stopping. I get my heart rate up to 90 and the treadmill indicates I burn 90+ calories. I should probably also add in some other exercises daily, but not sure which ones are best. I just finished building two retainer walls (taking 2 weeks) at home with 180 concrete blocks weighing 50 lbs each, and carrying each block 30-50 feet to where I needed to place them. Thus I consider myself fairly active and fit. What exercises should I add in a daily routine and what heart rate or calories should I target on my daily treadmill walk?

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I started working out at 53 now 65. I started lifting weights both free and machine (which I tried to give away for years). Over the years my workout routine has changed many times. 6 years ago I added stair climbing because I couldn’t lose the fat in some areas, that did the trick also I never ate breakfast before, so I added that to my day and the fat came off faster. Things that I wouldn’t have considered doing such as yoga are now a part of my routine. Balance exercises became part routine. For me trying new workouts has made more aware of how my body works

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At 62 I completed a week long boot camp on the NE UK Coast. Then 15 months of post-op inactivity and at 63 I’m starting again (!) back in the gym 5 or 6 times a week.

Muscle memory is a real thing thank heavens as is the need to remember I’m not 18. It’s ok to be slower as long as I’m exercising. Life, diet and health are good…….bring on retirement!! Your tips have been helpful, thank you

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